pneumatic tire



110.936,569. PATBNTBD Nov. zo, 190s. A. now.

Pusumnc ma.

LPPLIUATIO! ILED LPI. 10. 1600.

3 lRSBTI-BBEET 1.

m mw. m m M fw..

No. 836,569. PATENTED NOV. 20, 1906. A. DOW. PNEUMATIG TIRE.

APPLIOLTIOH FILED APB. 1B. 1906.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

No. 836,569. PATENTBD NOV. 20, 1906.

A. DDW.

' PNEUMATIG TIRE.

rumanos num un. 1a. nos.

UNITED STATES FFICE. ALEXANDER noir, oF New roiiic n, r,

PNEUMATlC TlRE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 20, 1906.

Appiivanim filari Apri118,190. serial No. 312,338.

T0 all: wlmi", it iii/ny unniccl'b.

Bo it known that I, .ALEXANDER Dowi citizen' of the Unit-ed States of America, and a resident of Xew York city, County sind State of New York, have invented certain new a-nd useful Improvements in Pneumatic Tires, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an improvement in pneumatic tires, sind has particular reference to means for Sealing and healing punctures which ina-y occur in the samen Broadly speaking, the Subject-matter. of my invention pertains to that class of tirelieiiliiig apparatus wherein :L heahng coinouml in association with solid .matter not homogeneous therewith is carried by pneumatic tire in position to be affected the pneumatic ressure when a puncture occurs, so as to rive the compound into the puncture and by so doing to both close and seal the aperture. I ain awarethat this art has been developed along the linee referred to sind that it is not broadly new in the Mleit-lier to employ a healing compound or a vhee-lino com mind associated with materie-l carried by t ie compound, .and I realize that in order to make clear the full meaning of my invention it will he necessiirv for ine to differentiate my present invention from oth ers of the saine class which may appear iiiiirst to contain substantially the saine e|e ments.

)Iy invention consist-s in the employment of a conveying or carrying iiiediuni consistilg "f fluidi Preferably having I:i flowing quality and one that does not readily evaporate. I mix with this fluid ai long tough iber--suc-h, for instance, as font-hers, longiibered cotton, long-ihered sisbBSOSi 0r Ther material, such asiloiigd'ilicred grosses. the requisite 0f such material being that it should he relatively long und tough.

[also point our ns :in important feature ol" my invention that the fiber or foreign nuitci'iiil used should prefcriihlv hv 0f i lflll'll forni--such, for institut-e', iis Feathers. referred to, which whonprcsciilcd to n hole simili cud first will tend t-o juni in its possnge into the. holo. l would h c undcislood iilso :is intending to usc in this connection amy forni of wedge-shaped iirl-iclc which um." lnof mitin-ill struc-turc or url-iliciiilly iiiiiniifiictllicd for the purpose suitable to lic ciu'- lied :nid ciipiihlc nl' living ciu'ricd hy thc llind above referred to. As heretofore stat-ed, I iiiix such iiiiiteriiils with zi. flowing materia-l und eiiiplo;r the sinne iis a inea-nn under pneumatic. ressiue to stop the hole in ii pncuniiitic tire. he manner in which I muy employ the saine is various. I may inention, liow over, that. the. compound may be contained within the tire and permitted to flow therein und by the operation of the tire be thrown against the inner walls in such a manner as to completely cover the sii-ine and be in a. position to be operated u on by the pneumatic pressure in the event. o a puncture occurring. Again, I iiinv iiiterpose the compound above referred to etween the Walls of the tire or between tho Walls of the inner tube of a tire, or I may make the inner tube of o tire double on )art of its eripliery and interpose the hoaiiig material carriig such foreign matter in a chamber covering port of its periphery. I desire to call particular attention to the use ol' feathers in this connection. I believe that I have discovered ii qualitv in feathers which nmkes them particularly adaptable for this purpose, l'irst, because of the long taperin qualiti-Y of the feather, which causes it w ien resented to a hole to j ain therein, and also y reason of its shape to overlie o. hole and when one feather is laid upon another by reason of the pneumatic pressure over the hole to seal the saine. All of this is aided by reason of the peculiar textile quality of the feat-her, which produces a. fabric. through which the luld cannot pass. In this connection the fluid in turn prevents the escape of the nir through it.

The operation ol' my device is substantisillyv as follows: When it puncture occurs, the pneumatic pressure opera-tes upon the fluid carrying thc feet-hers or other foreign matter to convey the saine to the puncture, which is immediately filled by the feathers or other foreign matter in one ol' sc-vi-ralwiiys, either by forciiiv the sii-nic through thc hole. lit-.whining with tlhctupcicd end of thc foil-ther, which, it will he niiiiiifcst, will ciiusc thc bers or bronches ol' thc fciitlici to juin int-o the liolc und picvciit its liiitlierpiissn-gc,or thc fciithcr niny ovcllic thc hoh` und he followed by other leathers overlying; the sinne, so whcrc long'llicrs iircciiiployid such ils longibci'cd col-ton, iishcstos, or grossi-s, or whiitcvcr it.- only hc- -il` the liberiiu'c nol. iniiiicdiait-ely forced into ihi- Iiolc they will m-ci'lic thc suini'. Experience hns .shown inc that IIC sometimes a few feathers will be forced into the hole, but that in the majority of cases and under normal conditions the fibers will overlie the hole and form a mat which will elfectually seal the aperture and prevent the further escape of air. I have referred to feathers in this connection for the reason that I have found them to be peculiarly adapted for this purpose. I attribute their adaptablit ,irst, to the fact that they are of a tapering ibi-'m and that when they are presented to a hce or aperture the taper end will be forced through and under the pneumatic ressure the other limbs or arms of the eather will tend to choke the hole in such a way as to completelyT seal the same. This reference is particularly made with regard to large apertures made in a pneumatic. tire. With reference to small a ertures-such, for instance, as may be ma e by an ordinary nail-the feather will overlie the a erture and heal the same, or if forced thro at all it will take the form above indicate The same is true of any long fiber such as I have described or any manufactured fiber having a tapering form that would form or make a wedge-shaped plug to fill the hole or would act as an overlying barrier to bridge the gap forming the aperture, one ber overlying the other to sea the same. My observation in theoperation of this sealing method has disci the fact that large apertures made in a neumatic tire will be promptly sealed bget e o ration of the feathers or other ii rs indliated by me. It will be understood that these feathers or fibers are carried by a semiiluid material in proximity to the periphery of the pneumatic tire and in position to be immediately operated upon by the pneumatic pressure as soon as a puncture occurs.

Referring to the rior state ofthe art, I am aware that others ve attem ted to accomplish the result above described. In some cases feathers have been used in a dry formsimply introduced into the interior of a pneu matic tire with the expectation that they would fly to fill an aperture or puncture when the same occurred. My experience has been that this form of employing feathers is inoperative. Again, I find in the art numerous attempts to mix a healing compound with varioussubstancessuch, for instance as finely-divided rubber, finelydivided as estos finely-divided cork, {indy-divided mica, an other pulverized substances. In all of these cases, so far as my information goes, the Whole compound intended for use as stated has been iinely divided for the specific purpose of having` the same readily introduced into the tirr` through tlu` valve. 'lhcsc compounds with their combination ol' ele ments have been found incllicient cxx-opt in cases whore the puncture' was very small und where the compmmd would, by rcusrm ol its healing qualities, pass into the aperture and seal the same.

I desire to differentiate my invention from all of those above referred to by reason of the fact that I employ fiber having a particular form and being of suhicent length to accomplish the result of either plugging the hole or ridgin the same, or both. My invention lies 1n t e selection b me of a fiber such as I have described, and believe that I have discovered a means by which pneumatic tires are etfectually healed where a puncture occurs, whether the same be large or small.

In order that I may be entire] clear, I de sire to state that one of the fun amental elements of my invention lies in the fact that I provide means consisting of fibers havin a particular form, length, and structure capa le of either plugging up a hole or bridging the same in such away as to cause a seal, in elther case o erating to prevent the further passage of the iquid carrying the fibers, and thus sealing the aperture against the further escape of the air. In other words, the operation when a uncture occurs and the instrument is withdawn is that of buildin up a net work or mesh into or over a ho e in such a wa as to cause an artificial superstructure to be uilt within and over the same.

I have illustrated my in vention in the ac companyin drawings, des ating the parts by numera s, referring to xke parts by like numerals.

Figures 1 to 7, inclusive, are vertical sections of a tire, wbilcl Figs. 8 to 11, inclusive, and 16, are enlarged views, in vertical section, with the exception of Fig. 9, which is a plan view. Fi l l2 to 15 are iagrammatic views.

Fig. l s ows my invention in vertical secF tion as applied to what is known as a singletube`l tire, l representing the inner section, 3 the outer section, while 2 is the compound contained between the inner and outer sections.

F ig. 2 represents a vertical section of that form of tire wherein the inner tube is contained within a shoe, l representing the inside wall of the inner' tube, 3 the outside wall of the inner tube, 2 the compound contained between the walls of the inner tube, 4 the extcrior shoe, while 5 is the rim securing the shoe to the wheel.

Fig. 3 is a vertical section of an inner tube suc-h as is illustrated in Fig. 2, wherein more clearly can be seen the form of the inner tube, which consists of two arts, to wit: two tubes, one bein" ol smaller: nnnetor than the other, the smaller tube being containedwithin the larger and having intel oscd between them thc compound employer b v me to close an aperture.

Fig. 4 is u vertical suction ol' :mother form of inner tube wherein l represents thc inner lube. Il represents n suction ol' n. tubi` adapted to bc scaled und secured over the inner tube 1 IIO usua form und construction with mv invention for closing apertures cont-aine( within the same.

Figs; and 7 illustrate another form of applying my invention. Fig. 6 is a. vertical section of a. tube into which I introduce my com pound und which is flnttened out to form n bond Pr belt adapted to partially embrace the inner tub'e and be secured thereto in a way to become integral therewith. Fig. 7 shows this belt laid on the inner tube and secured thereto in a Aositio'n to be operative. Fig. 7 shows 1 as t e inner tube, while 2 represents the belt, and 3 the compound.

Fig. 8 is a vertical section illust-rating an enlarged view of my device, showing the operation of the same when n, small puncture occurs, while Fig. 9 is a horizontal section taken on the line X X.

ln Fig. 10 .l have illust-rated n larger puncture than that illustrated in F S, showing the effect of the air-pressure upon my compound. Fig. 1 1 illustrates ustill larger puncture, illust-rating the effect of Wedge-shaped materials when operated upon by the airpressure.

Fig. 1'2 is a. vertical section of a Wedgesha-pcd piece such as I have described, While Fig. 13 shows a. double-pointed wedge. Fig. 14 is n. fiber having nn eniargement in its diameter, and Fig. l5 illustrates a. feather. All of these, ns heretofore described in my ploy to close apertures in pneumatic tires.

' oir-pressure und form u seul.

the fibers will :not over the hole ouder the ln Fig. 1U l have shown this holo soinewl'urt larger where g b v the sealing com ound.

the nir-pressure will tend to force some of the fibers into the hole, operating as n cork to seal the hole. In Fig. ll I have shown n still larger hole, where the wedge-shaped nui-te ris s form e dum to seal the hole, one oper ating upon the other. ln Fig. 16 l have shown how the tnpering feathers or fibers of tapering form find their way through the aperture in the tire, entering the same the smnll end first and becoming clogged therein by reason of their ta. ering or wedge-slmpcd forni, all of which o 'ers n resist-once to thc passage and eventuell;Y closes the aperture.

I am aware that many inventions have been made for the pur ose of developinv ma t-crials suitable for seulinvpunctures. lhese materials have consister of various finelydividcd nmterinls-such as chalk, graphite and cotton fibers cut into short len ths, ground rubber, mic-ar, and the like. '.lhese previous inventions do not exhibit the neture of m5' invention, in that my discover? relates to the clliciencjr in action of fibers of certain lengths and forms in the mixture which deimt-ely serve to build up o structure over or in the orifice reventing the further escape of the paste. n the inventions 11e-retofore referred to only extremely small punctures could be stopped bj: the nntterisl used. The small particles of cork tended t-o choke. up the orifice, which was afterward closed `While. these com- Q pounds have server to close very smell holes, specification, are employed by nie 1n the; nmnuferet-ure of the compound Whlch I emf I parent.

Fig. 16 shows the operation of the air upon materials such as those illustrated in Figs. 12 to l5, all of which, it will be noted, have a I tendenev to clog the hole as a result of their wedge-.shaped form.

In Figs. 1 to 16, inclusive, I have referred i no resistance is ofl'ered to their passage.

to the inner tube as 1, the com ound gcnerull-v as 2, the external part. of t e Inner tube or'band ns 3, the shoe :is und the puncture as 5. The wedge-shaped fibrous nnrtcrinl or artificial wedge-shuped material employed by me in manufacturing my compound l have designated throughout as i2". ln view the)v failed to operate successfulll.' on larger cuts or punctures. The reason for this is ap- W'here the hole is snntll, the parti cles of cork or other finely-divided material clog up the hole, und the healing fluid seuls the same: but where the aperture is of um` ccmsideruble size the finely-divided particles are immediately blown through the l1ole,\rs i invention, on the other hund. prox-fides` means by which the nature of the fiber in everv ense serves to hermeticullyseul hirge or snmll. o )enings in thc tire. The composite paste oi llour'and writer or on)` other suitable semiuid is mixed to n considernbh` degree of the full description of my invention heretol l'or e developed those illustrations will roquirebut little explaination. I may. however,

of thickness with fibers selected for their length zuid pcruhur forms. 'l'lusc fibers should preferably be of lroru one -hnlf inch to state the; in Figs. l to incusive. l have shown wlmt l regard ns my preferred Form of eonstrurtirm lor applying my compound in n sutishrotor. position to puni-lure occurs.

llzlvl vnrleuvnl'od l0 lllusilul-i morev t'll'vrtunllv my luulcrstouding of the manner in whit'. i my invention operarios. the long tapering [ilu-rs which l emphnl lying ncross n-suul-ll nporturc. In such unse ns this lie effec-live when n In Figs. El lo 16, inclusive.

Fig. S Shows i t'wo inches in length und their forms of u tnpcring nuture. While leathers operate in pl'urtifo very successfully, suitable fibers could be found in nature having thcapproximately correr-t lorm or Ihey could be muuu fnrrured urtilciulljv for the purpose. .1in im portoni. lonture ol' my invention lios in tlu` utility.' ol those long` und special]ly-slmpvrl fibers. 'luu confined in llnl.-irc',llu\ l'orlu u mnt-lilie l'nluir pcrlneulml with the palsly fluid. ln order lo pour! ure. the nir-vlnl-lnlwr.

IOC

IIS

the puncturing instrumenthas topass through l this fabric, the fibers of which are free to move apart to permit the passage of the 5 pntic-turing instrument. When the instrument is withdrawn, the puncture will be closed in one of three ways.

First. If the hole is a small one, the fibers will be returned by the paste to their original position over the hole, bridging the saine with I a fine textile fabric. lf the air-pressure can drive the thick pasty fluid through this texture, it can do so only by adding to the fabric whatever fibers it bears with it, thus uickly sealing the puncture against further ow of the fluid, the presence of the fluid fillingl the interstices in t e fabric,preveiiting the escape of air. This condition of affairs is exhibited in Figs. 8 and 9.

Second. In case the opening or cut is larger than the one just described the fibers will tend to be doubled and be forced into the o ening by the air-pressure. The length of t e fibers and their tapering form will in this case tend to jam in the opening, as exhibited in Fig. i0, in that before one set of fibers is forced through the hole others 'have been added to it, and the fiow ofthe past-e is again checked.

Third. The important value of the wedgeshaped form of these fibers in sealing very large uiictures or cuts is exhibited in Fig. 11. 'nder these circumstances where the hole is sufficiently' large the wedge-shaped materials tend to be forced bodily out of the orifice. If they are presented large end first, they are sometimes blown thi-ou h the orifice. Ii' they are presented ema l end first, the fiber cannot pass through the orifice without. dragging the large end through. This results in a weding action of the fibers among themselves, wdfiich forms an inverted pyramid over the hole, which prevents the escape of the Huid. Feathers used in this connection operate very successfully, in that their small ends are extremely fine and the branches readily tangle with one another.

I have exhibited in Figs. 12 to 15, inclusive, various forms of fiber or manufactured material which could be used and would o ierate according to the foregoing principle. t will he clearlyY understood from what has pre ceded that the action of these fibers is to positieljiv build a network in or over thc hole, the tightness of which is being continually increased by the air-pressure or by the flow of any fluid through it. In practice l prefer to select for the feathers used a mixture of different sizes from very fine down u to feutheis two inches or more in length. l' rom ferred to therein. 1 desire to define the meaning that I intend to give to this word as follows: I do not intend to include therein any fluids such iis air or gas, but only fuids having a body and substance greater than that of air and gas, as water, paste, or healing compounds formed of various materials known to the art. In other Words, I define the word liquid as used by nie in my claims herein as beine a substance differentiated from air or as by the expression liquid material, suc as water or combinations of liquids known in the arts as healing compounds, wherein the combination forms a fluid or plastic material which may be of a plastic or semifiuid nature or of anyv other nature suitable for the purposes other than gases or air.

What I claim, and desire to procure by Letters Patent, is

1. A sealing mixture consisting of a. liquid mixed with feathers.

2. A sealing mixture consisting of' a liquid mixed with feathers and lo fibers.

3. A sealing mixture for c osin punctures consisting of aliquid niied with eathers.

4. A sealing mixture for closing punctures consisting of liquid mixed with long fibers.

5. A sealing mixture for closing punctures consisting of fiuid mixed with feathers and long fibers.

6. A sealing mixture for closing punctures consisting of a tire-healing fiuid mixed with long fibers.

7. A sealing mixture for closing punctures consisting of a tire-healing fluid mixed with ,feathers and long fibers.

8. A sealingr mixture for closing uiictures consisting of a liquid mixed with fi Yirous ma` teria-ls of a tapering form.

9. A sealing mixture for closing punctures consisting of u fluid mixed with long fibers and finely-divided material.

l0. The combination wit-1i a finiti-container, of a sealing compound therefor and contained therein consisting,r of a liquid and feathers.

l1. The combination with a [luid-container, of a sealing compound therefor and contained therein consisting of a liquid and long fibers.

1'2. Tlic combination with a fluid-container, of u sealing compound therefor and contained therein consisting of a liquid, feathers and long fibers.

'13. The combination with ii` fluid-contiiiiicr, of u scaling compound therefor und contained thci'cin consisting of a liquid and fibrous nuitciiii-l olii tapering form.

i4. The combination with o pneumatic lire. ol` n compound conlnincd therein consisting of ii liquid and feathers.

l5. The combination with a pneumatic tiro, of :i compound contained lhci'cin consisting ol' ii liquid and long lilicrs.

IOO

19. The combination with n pneumatic,

tire, of a compound contained ther-em consisting of n healing* iiuid, feathers and long fibers.

20. The combination' with n pneumatic.

tire provided with a chamber between the walls of the tire, of a. sealing compound in said chamber consisting of si liquid mixed with feathers.

2l. The combination with a pneumatic tire provided With a, chamber between the walls of the tire, of asealingr compound in I ner tube provided with u chamber between the walls of the inner tube, of a scaling compound in said chamber consistingF ol a linx ture of liquid und feathers.

24. A pneumatic tire consisting ot' un inner tube and the retaining casin or shoe, the inner tube provided with a c amber between the wells of the inner tube, of n sealing compound in-snid chamber consistii'ig!` of n liquid mixed with long fibers.

25. A. pneumatic tire consisting ol an inner tube and the retaining casing or shoe, the inner tube provided with a chamber between the wells of the inner tube, of a. sealing conipound in seid chamber consisting of a fluid mixed with long fibers and feathers.

26. A pneumatic tire consisting of an inner I tube and the retaining casing or shoe ,ti1e 1nsaid chamber consisting oi a. Huid mixed with long fibers.

22. The combination. with n pneumatic.;

and State of New York, this 17th day of tire provided with n. chamber between the walls of' the tire, of a. sealing compound m said ehinnber consisting of e Huid mixed with feathers and fibers'.

23. A pneumatic tire consisting of an inner tube and the retaining casing or shoe, the innertube provided with a chamber between the wells of the inner tube, of a. sealing compound in said chamber consisting of a liquid mixed with fibrous material of a. tapering forni.

Signed by me at New York city, county April, 1906.

ALEXANDER DOW. Witnesses:

EMMA W. FINLAYSON, PAUL RofNGn. 

